


As good as it gets

by everytimeverywhere



Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Coming of Age, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Self-Discovery, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Vacation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-08-21
Packaged: 2019-05-31 20:55:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15127646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everytimeverywhere/pseuds/everytimeverywhere
Summary: Woojin hasn't cared for much in a while. He's never been sure of anything enough for it to have a longterm place in his life.Maybe with the exception of Jihoon, that is.





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hii this is my first fic, so please go easy on me haha.
> 
> The slow burn in the tags is seriously slow, just a warning.
> 
> If you spot any mistakes or anything amiss, please feel free to leave a comment! Constructive critism is always welcomed, even if it's about how the story just sucks, plain and simple. (lol it does suck, there isn't even a plot)

Jihoon rests the top half of his body on the café table, nuzzling his face into the crook of his arm. He lets out a soft whine.

Woojin sighs, patting his bestfriend on the head. "Don't worry too much, different offers come in at different times, it's too bad you don't know anyone who applied for the same course as you."

Jihoon shoots him a glare through his bangs, chin still resting on his forearm. "I hear that."

"Hear what?" Woojin asks innocently.

"That sarcasm in your voice." Jihoon squints his eyes at the younger boy. "Like you're any better." He retorts, "I can count the number of people you hang out with on one hand."

Woojin laughs. "Touché."

Woojin has known Jihoon for the better part of 6 years, even though he's been in Seoul for 7. It was only after they ended up in the cinema alone, next to each other, that saw Jihoon striking up a conversation.

_"I'm paying to watch 20 minutes of ads and I didn't even get student price today." The older boy had grumbled, eyes following the screen lazily._

Woojin had thought Jihoon had been talking to himself at first, he hadn't recognised the "mysterious boy" from the same level as him mostly due to the fact that the reputation Jihoon possessed was based on rumours, which required the medium of _friendship_ to reach Woojin's ears.

 _Rumour_ he learnt, was a fitting word for the boy after he started insisting on having lunch with the pre-pubescent Woojin after their two sentenced conversation in the theatre.

He only realised that Jihoon was addressing him from the way he had been leaning into their shared armrest, and it took him more than a few moments to construct a cohesive statement.

_"Yeah! And I don't even like dinosaurs that much." Woojin had replied blandly, voice an octave higher than it is now, before the lights dimmed._

Jihoon rolls his eyes but he's grinning. "If I don't get in, I'm gonna have to join that crappy tech uni."

"You mean the one I'm in?" He challenges, flicking the boy's head playfully from across the table.

Jihoon swats him away. "I mean, it wasn't crappy before you got accepted…" he ducks on impulse for a hit that never comes.

Woojin is offended, to some degree, but he can't help grinning at the older boy. Jihoon was witty, enough so to be misunderstood as immature most times, but Woojin got him. Jihoon just had a weird sense of humour.

He used to look up to Jihoon, (physically as well, he was a late bloomer) the boy was perfect at communicating in the way that Woojin wasn't. He knew how to express whatever was on his mind with the limited vocabulary of a single language. It was never the words he chose, Woojin discovered, it was the _way_ he said them that got everyone understanding his thoughts.

Woojin's biggest fear was being misunderstood. Maybe that's why he didn't mind having Jihoon as a bestfriend after years of acquaintances.

"Why are you looking at me like that." Jihoon quirks an eyebrow at his tanned companion. Woojin's taller than him now.

"I don't know." Woojin replies dumbly. He knows, he's just not sure if he should bring it up.

Jihoon sits up and leans away from him. "Stop it's freaking me ou-"

"Is it bad that I hope you don't get accepted?" Woojin tries to keep his expression as neutral as possible.

"Oh. _My fam._ " Jihoon jokes, clutching his heart. "I'll miss you too man, but I'm pretty set on this."

Woojin holds back a, "I just don't want someone else to be your bestfriend." Some things are best left unspoken.

He stopped putting Jihoon on a pedestal once he realised that the boy could have the companionship of _anyone_ he wanted. But he chooses Woojin and pretty girls, mostly. Woojin feels like Jihoon's superpower could be used for greater things, greater _people._

The bell chimes and in walks the man of the hour, or lady, rather.

"Hey babe." Jihoon grins, pulling a chair out for her to sit. Ever the gentleman.

She thanks him and waves at both of them, scooping her hair over one shoulder.

"Aish. I'm on a diet… can I just take some from you?" She shoots Jihoon her best grin, which takes Woojin's breath away. Just a bit. And it's not even aimed at him.

"No."

"I don't know why I tried." She shrugs. Jihoon is willing to go to the ends of the Earth for his partner, but sharing food? Ha! What a joke.

"You can take some of mine if you want." Woojin offers. Not because of her sparkly teeth or anything just, you know, common courtesy.

"Thanks Woojinieeee."

"Tch stop hitting on my girlfriend." Jihoon says territorially, but there's a hint of teasing behind his words. Woojin frowns a miniscule, is it because he's never had a girlfriend?

Minji ticked off every one of Jihoon's girlfriend requirements. Shorter than him, double eyelids, good skin, she had it all.

Which was why Woojin knew it wouldn't last. It was too good to be true. It didn't work out with the last four and he knows it sure as hell won't work out this time. Fate wasn't this kind.

"Ya Park Woojin. What is this." Woojin looks up from his daydream session and into the pup likedness of Kang Daniel, dance classmate, b-boy extraordinaire and as mentioned before, one of Woojin's many acquaintances.

"What is what." He answers.

" _This_ " Daniel gestures to Minji. "I thought you only had one friend."

"Don't worry hyung, she's not ordering anything." He replies.

Daniel rolls his eyes and smirks. "You make it sound like I'm unwilling to give you staff discounts. I just didn't know the two of you hung out with people besides each other."

Jihoon scrunches his nose. Minji giggles. "What do mean you both of us. It's just Woojin!"

Three pairs of eyes meet his, waiting for some sort of defence or denial, only to be met with a nonchalant shrug. Well, _it's true_.

Daniel laughs with his whole face, Woojin had discovered a while back. He likes it.

"What do you guys want then?" He says, chuckles trailing off.

"You have all day breakfast right? Can I get some eggs benedict?" Jihoon answers, eager at the thought of food.

Daniel looks over at Woojin after tapping on his ipad. Woojin raises his eyebrows at Minji, who smiles sheepishly.

"I'll eat anything. You choose."

He orders waffles.

Once Daniel walks away Minji speaks up, "Woojin is so nice to me. I don't understand why I'm dating you and not him instead." He wonders that too.

"If you want him you can have him." Jihoon says nonchalantly. Minji scowls.

"Some boyfriend you are." Rolling her eyes, but smiling nonetheless.

Woojin watches the exchange from afar. There's always that underlying tone, the joking that irks him so much. Is it really unbelievable that someone found him attrative?

"Look at him. He'll gladly take you. He's whipped." Jihoon nods over at Woojin, who zones out more often than not.

"My room is open 24/7." He spills. _Bad joke_. He knows it even before Jihoon responds.

"Now that's just going too far." Jihoon says and wacks him upside the head.

He'll figure out a witty comeback one of these days.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bit of angsty stuff, but I'm confident they'll work it out :)

Minji breaks up with Jihoon two weeks later, as per Woojin's prediction, but that's not the most pressing issue on Jihoon's mind.

They meet up at the same café, Woojin carrying most of the conversation unlike usual times. He talks about _anything_  but universities, Jihoon offering no more than a subtle nod and occasional humming.

"I can't believe it." The older boy says abruptly, and Woojin knows his caution is all for naught.

"Dude…" Woojin was never good at comforting and he probably never will be, but he'll try his best.

Daniel walks up to them gingerly and slides a cappuccino in front of Jihoon. "On the house." Jihoon shoots him a tight smile that Daniel returns. He lays a gentle hand on Jihoon's shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze. How Daniel knows, Woojin has no idea, maybe it's the absolute look of despair on Jihoon's face.

"It'll be fun if choose to make it fun, you'll enjoy it if you choose to enjoy it." Daniel advises. Jihoon bites his lip. As his bestfriend, Woojin can tell he's on the verge of cussing the older boy out.

One thing Jihoon _hates_ is sympathy. And cheesy lines.

"I mean… you've definitely prepared for this, right?" Woojin changes the subject as Daniel leaves, the boy was just trying to be nice.

"Yeah but… I was really looking forward to going there. What did I do wrong?" He sniffles a bit, clutching his phone in both hands, knuckles turning white.

"Hey, if anything, SNU is in the wrong. They're totally missing out on a babe like you." Jihoon's chuckles but it's barely there and he's hiding behind his bangs.

"And besides… you get to hang out with me 24/7." Woojin teases.

Jihoon sighs and presses the heel of his palms into his eyes.

"As much as I hate to say this," Jihoon whispers. "Daniel's got a point." He sighs. "Let's do this." But there isn't much conviction in his voice. "What do I have to know about the University of Seoul? Why did you even wanna go there?"

"I mean… I don't know, I didn't want the pressure of being in the top three but I wanted to stay in Seoul.

Jihoon crosses his arms.

"There were so many courses! I just, chose one I guess. Programmers are pretty high in demand now, so… y'know." Woojin scratches the back of his neck.

"Is that your dream? Programming?" Jihoon asks. He  _knows_ it's not, he's just looking to pick a fight, as he usually does when he's in a bad mood. Woojin prepares himself for the onslaught of insults and wills his pride to  _not escalate._

Woojin shrugs. "I don't have any dreams in particular."

Jihoon blows up, understandably, it sounds worse than it actually is.

"Then _what the fuck_ dude. I thought you _wanted_  this you know? I thought maybe, if I was going to be forced into a school that I had no intention of joining, that at least I'd be with my bestfriend. And at least one of us would be happy."

"Well, _I_ think I'll be able to code, eventually. I may not have a fucking clue what it entails but that's what school's for right? _Learning._ " He's defending for the sake of it. He knows that Jihoon's right, but his pride tends to spit words out without his permission.

Jihoon shakes his head. He not mad, Woojin knows him well enough. He's _disappointed_. In _Woojin_. But Woojin honestly doesn't need the guilt right now.

"You may not know what you want to do, but it sure as hell isn't _computer engineering_. You can't sit still for more than 10 minutes!" He sucks in a breath, trying to compose himself. "I only applied because you did and now we're both stuck in some engineering school when we don't even know how to connect to wifi." Woojin thinks it's honestly _not that big of a deal_. Employers don't look at _what_ degree you have, just that you _have_  a degree.

"Jihoon. Calm down ok? It's really not as bad as it seems." Woojin thinks they can get through it. Together, especially. Jihoon stares straight at him.

"How are you so… indifferent? Do you not care about what your life is going to become?" Jihoon chuckles humourlessly. Woojin's affronted, slightly, but understands where the boy is coming from.

"I get your point but it's no reason to be upse-"

"Why are you always so calm? Can't you be human for once?" Jihoon was exasperated.

"It's just no reason to be upset. I don't understand why it's such a big deal to you."

Jihoon grabs at a tear that slips out his left eye. It was quick, but Woojin notices. He sometimes wishes he were less observant.

 _Great job Woojin. Way to go_.

"Because it is! As simple as that. It may not be to you, but it is to me. So let me mope and get angry and blame everyone but myself. Ok?" Jihoon shouts. "You just have to agree with everything I say." He trails off and wipes his tears with the back of his hand. "It's in the bestfriend handbook."

Woojin nods and keeps silent.

"God. Just… stop being so _logical_. When did you become _not_  stupid? I miss when we were 15 and thought jumping off the second story was a good idea." He buries his face in his hands, taking a deep breath. He mumbles something along the lines of "I miss my bestfriend."

"What was that?" Woojin asks, daring, but hoping Jihoon dismisses it.

"It's nothing."

 

* * *

 

In a mix of bitterness and insecurity, Woojin meets his future girlfriend at dance camp.

Or rather, "dance camp" as Daniel puts it. The whole event was organised in the span of a week and basically consisted of sleeping over in addition to regular training schedules.

The campsite was a humble studio located conveniently above the cafe Daniel worked at. Owned by the two trainers, Sungwoon and Taehyun, the studio was doing barely enough to keep afloat if it weren't for the extra income Taehyun got from his Fintech job.

Woojin had brought a change of clothes, a bottle of hair + body wash, a sleeping bag and some loose change, all of which he hand carries, without a bag, on his 10 minute walk from home.

He gets there second, a girl Woojin vaguely recognizes fiddling with the hifi system. He takes a deep breath, already knowing the implications of "dance camp" and what it come with. _new people_. He shudders.

"Need some help?" He tosses his belongings into the corner of the room and walks over, with as much confidence as he can muster. He recalls the wikihow article he read on the way over.

_The key to enjoying a camp is to socialise_

He takes the phone from her and connects the bluetooth to the speaker's. Woojin thinks of the conversation he had with Jihoon, maybe the guy doesn't know him as well as he thinks. He _can_ solve minor IT problems with the aid of Google. They weren't all stuck in the past like _some people_.

He almost rolls his eyes, but realises how odd that would be and toggles the volume dial instead, a jazz melody flowing through.

"Thanks." She grins at him. She's got wide eyes and freckles sprinkled across her cheeks. "Er… what's your name again?"

"Uh. Woojin. Park Woojin."

"Ah! Nice to meet you I'm Kim Seoyeon. I'm usually taught by Taehyun."

Woojin scrunches his nose and plops on the floor stretching his legs wide. "Ugh friday night classes."

Seoyeon laughs and follows suit. "It's the only time I'm free. I've never been to one of your classes, when do you teach?"

Woojin looks up from grabbing his toes. "Oh? I'm just a student."

Seoyeon almost looks as taken aback as he is. "Really? I thought you were a teacher this entire time! You're really good."

Woojin flashes his snaggletooth and waves it off. With less than 30 students, everyone knew everyone, or at least their face and dancing ability.

"I'm serious! You're so close to Sungwoon I thought you were a trainer too. And that other guy, the bboy one, is he also just a student? His dancing is _awesome_."

Woojin laughs at the absurdity of someone calling Daniel awesome (he agrees but would never say it out loud, the boy had a big enough ego).

"No no, he's just a student too. I don't think Sungwoon and Taehyun can afford to pay for trainers."

Seoyeon nods. "That's true. The fees here are pretty cheap."

Woojin shrugs. "They don't teach dance for the money." Seoyeon hums.

They sit in silence after that, continuing their stretching exercises. Woojin's eyes refuse to meet hers.

"What-"

"How-"

They blush and chuckle, Woojin nods for her to go first.

"How old are you?"

"20."

"Woah. Really? You look a lot older than that. I thought you were 24, minimum."

Woojin quirks an eyebrow, growing up, he's always been told he had the face a mischievous kid.

"People normally think I'm younger, actually. You're the first person who thinks that." He sits cross legged now, distracted from his warm ups.

"I mean, maybe it's because I've seen you more than once. Based on your face alone I'd think you're 15." She grins. "But I've seen you around, and you carry yourself like an adult. However adults may carry themselves." She chuckles but stops abruptly. "I mean," her eyes widen, "not that I've been watching you or anything."

Woojin chuckles as red spreads across her cheeks.

"I've seen you around too. It's hard not to when the classes don't have fixed timings." She smiles with her whole face too. Woojin likes it. "How old are you?"

"Why don't you guess." Woojin knows her age, overhearing a conversation about university applications.

He decides against getting it correct. Too creepy. Do girls like being older or younger?

"Uh… 21?"

She shakes her head, eyes sparkling. "Close."

"My age?"

She nods. "Are you going to university? Have you accepted any offers?"

In the one conversation Woojin overheard (eavesdropped), he knows that Seoyeon has applied to University of Seoul too amongst a few others. He rarely gets excited, or wants anything enough but there's an inkling of hope in his chest.

"I'm going to University of Seoul." He says confidently. It's an alright school. Seoyeon's eyes light up.

"No way! Me too! Oh my god." She bounces from her sitting position, grabbing onto his calf. "I haven't met anyone else going there."

Woojin thinks of Jihoon. "My bestfriend's going there too. Jihoon."

"The pretty one?"

"Jihoon is a guy."

"Yeah, I know! The pretty one that always drops you off."

Woojin laughs. As infuriating as he is, Jihoon _i_ _s_ pretty.

"Yeah, that one."

"What did you want to ask me?" She tilts her head slightly, hand still on his calf. He stares at the point of contact and regrets not wearing shorts.

"I… uh, forgot."

She follows his gaze before retracting her hand abruptly.

"Sorry…" she mumbles, going back to stretching. "I get a little overexcited at times. Just tell me if it makes you uncomfortable." Her eyes don't meet his.

He bends over, trying to regain eye contact. He knocks his right foot lightly against her left. And again. She looks up.

Once their eyes meet, Woojin gains a bolt of confidence. He isn't sure if it's out of sheer desperation of proving that he's _dateable_ or the fact that he genuinely enjoys her company, but he blurts out a,

"But I like it."

Her eyes widen for a fraction of a second before it registers and she buries her face in her hands, bangs sticking up and grumbling unintelligible complains. Woojin's face is hot, he can feel it without touching, but he wants to do this, he wants to prove something.

"What was that?" He teases trying to keep his voice from wavering.

"You can't say things like that…." She hides her face more, curling into herself.

"Why not? It's my mouth." He takes a deep breath while she's not looking, and prepares himself for phyical contact.

He reaches out toward her right forearm and grabs it gently, slowly pulling her hand away from her face.

"Are you attached? Am I being too forward?" He starts doubting himself.

She shakes her head shyly and all his doubts seem unfounded. Woojin smiles at the affirmation. There's a clattering at the door and Woojin shoots her a gentle smile before letting go.

"Er can someone help me open the door." Daniel's booming voice echoes from the other side of the entryway. Woojin jogs over and swings it open.

Daniel walks in carrying a cardboard box. He nods a greeting at Seoyeon, placing the box beside her.

"Do you guys not have bags." Woojin shrugs and Daniel laughs, looking at Woojin's mess of belongings.

The cardboard box moves and the scream Seoyeon releases is almost as high in pitch as Woojin's. Almost.

"Your box is moving!" Woojin backs up all the way to the door.

"Oh yeah." Daniel unfolds the top and lifts a cat out. He snuggles against it before passing it to Seoyeon. "This is Rooney."

Woojin only really sees Daniel in classes and the cafe but they've never hung out besides that, he never would have thought Daniel was a _weirdo_.

"What the fuck."

He reaches in the box again and pulls out a second cat. "And this is Peter." He snuggles Peter and passes it to Woojin.

Woojin holds the creature at arm's length and observes Seoyeon's tender patting. He softens and brings the cat closer to himself.

"I can't sleep without my babies."

Seoyeon giggles. "We're learning a lot about each other and the camp hasn't even started yet."

"Yeah like how Daniel's a freak."

Daniel snorts, seeing the humour of the situation but snatches Peter from Woojin.

"Got you away from the evil man." He baby talks, lifting Peter up to his face. He hangs the cat on his right shoulder, reaching down to take Rooney on his left.

"I'm Daniel by the way." He sticks a hand out to Seoyeon.

"Seoyeon."

"I think I've seen you around." He nods.

"What the fuck are those."

The three turn to face the new voice.

"Did you bring your cats to my studio?" Sungwoon comes over to rub both felines vigorously, cooing between complaints. "Taehyun will kill me if he finds out."

"Well, don't tell him then." Daniel says nonchalantly, passing both cats to the smaller man who fills up his arms quickly.

He rummages through the box before letting out a groan. He pulls out a black hoodie, completely covered in white cat fur. He dusts it off as best as he can and pulls it on.

Woojin looks on with an amused smile at the absurdity of it all and his eyes meet Seoyeon's, who reflects the same amusement.

Her smile widens and Woojin feels like he's part of something new.


	3. 3.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No jihoon here :( but he will return soon! For now, enjoy a few other w1 boys.

"Just crunch. In. Crunch in. Like yea- no. No."

Seoyeon drops her hands letting out a groan. "This is so hard."

Woojin chuckles. "You'll get it eventually don't worry."

"How do you…?" She tries to mimic Woojin, curling in her back.

"Ok. Imagine someone punching you."

"I wouldn't mind someone punching me right about now." She tries again. "Can you demonstrate it again?"

"Like this." He does it.

"I give up. How are you so good?"

Woojin shakes his head and smiles. "I won't be this good during the contemporary section. You can teach me then."

"I highly doubt that. You look like you're good at everything."

Woojin laughs. He _does_  actually have some contemporary experience. "We'll see."

They continue the choreography that Sungwoon taught the class. Their group contained 5 people, including Daniel and two other boys, Seongwoo and the newest member Guanlin.

Guanlin was a Taiwanese boy with a scholarship in SNU despite being 2 years younger than the average age. He wanted to learn to dance, in his cute, broken Korean, "to pick up korean girls."

Woojin sees the two older boys arguing, Seongwoo making some convulated explanation while Daniel repeatedly tells the foreign boy to "just feel it." Guanlin looks on confused as they bicker over who's right.

The lanky teen escapes the two hastily and approaches Woojin. He looks a lot taller up close and Woojin is almost intimidated until the boy speaks, and it seems puberty has yet to come to completion.

"Can you help me out?" He asks, in a mix of Korean and English, voice rough at the edges. Woojin understands enough.

He runs through the dance again, meeting Seoyeon's eye in the mirror once in a while. Smiling involuntarily everytime it happens.

"Can you remember it all? Your movements are still pretty chalky so just work on memorizing the choreography first before trying to improve your lines."

Guanlin looks at him, processing the words he just said. He nods eventually and gives two thumbs up to his temporary instructor.

"If you need any help, feel free to approach me." Woojin states, reaching to pat his shoulder. Guanlin nods again and practices the moves once more.

"Should we do it altogether now?" Daniel questions, walking over and ignoring a highly exasperated Seongwoo.

"I refuse to believe you're so good based on "groove" alone." Seongwoo says sarcastically, using airquotes to emphasise his point.

"So you think I'm good." Daniel smirks.

Woojin glances at the older boy through the mirror and catches a glimpse of Seongwoo dying.

"I walked right into that one."

Guanlin rolls his eyes at the two, counting down to get them started.

"5. 6. 7. 8..."

\---

The boys take the studio as residence for the night, letting the handful of girls take the backroom that actually had couches.

10 of them laid in neat parallels, one beside the other.

"Why is the ground so hard." Sungwoon complains, elbowing Daniel in the ribs to get more room. Daniel whines but cowers away from the smaller man.

Woojin was the only one who brought a sleeping bag and while the rest may have mocked his masculinity, he'd much rather just take the teasing and have a better night sleep than all of them combined.

"Woojin ah. My favourite student. You remember when everyone was making fun of you?" Sungwoon asks.

"Yeah… that was 5 minutes ago." Woojin answers, confused as to where this was going.

"Coach Ha didn't actually say anything you know?" Sungwoon sits up as he says this. Woojin eyes him cautiously.

"And…?"

Sungwoon stands and walks over to where Woojin's resting, between the mirror and Guanlin.

"Can you scoot over a bit? Coach has a bad back."

A chorus of sarcastic "wow"s echo through the studio.

"Shut up the rest of you, unless you have a sleeping bag for me to sleep in as well."

"I think this can only fit one person..." Woojin replies, snuggling into its warmth.

"Hyung is small. Don't worry!" He says, forcing himself next to Woojin.

Woojin shifts uncomfortably. Sleeping was something he did in private, the vulnerability and lack of awareness contributing to the dismal number of sleepovers he's attended. He just didn't like the idea of something happening without his knowledge.

He chose the spot next to Guanlin in case anything happened, from a wild fart to sleep talking or worse, a _wetdream,_  as the Taiwanese seemed like a stand up guy who'd understand his predicament well.

Sungwoon on the other hand, Woojin couldn't quite predict what went on in his head. In settings with just the two of them, Sungwoon was always encouraging and kind, but in front of a crowd, Woojin could feel the invisible pressure on him to please everyone, agreeing to things he didn't actually agree with, doing things that he wouldn't normally do.

Woojin likes to think he can read people well but still, there's always that paranoia where everyone's hiding something from him, that everybody actually hates him. It was the politeness of Korean culture, the constant reassurance and praise in front of your face but saving criticism for times where you're not there to defend yourself. Maybe that's why he stuck to Jihoon, who was always candid in calling Woojin out on his bullshit.

Woojin kinda gets Sungwoon now, he wants to please his coach even at the expense of his own discomfort, based on the off chance that Sungwoon will go around spitting lies about how selfish that snaggletoothed busan kid was. Maybe they weren't lies, if Woojin only wants to share a sleeping bag to avoid bad mouthing and not out of sheer kindness alone, maybe he's not all that noble.

 _But I don't mind sharing it._ One part of Woojin retorts.

In which the other replies. _T_ _hat's because we've come full circle and you're just trying to defend your pride._

Pride is a big thing for Woojin. He may seem to not mind much of anything, to always go with the flow, but it takes him a while to realise he's in the wrong sometimes, to own up to his mistakes.

"Woojin ah." Daniel whispers-shouts. "I can hear you thinking from here."

Woojin pops his head up and looks over toward the boy beside Guanlin.

"If this is about Jihoon, you should really make up with him soon." This draws a few gasps from the guys.

"You and Jihoon are fighting? What happened?" Seongwoo whispers across Daniel, Guanlin and Sungwoon even though everyone is awake.

Woojin regrets quarreling with Jihoon in such a public place, especially where one of his hyungs could see, but it was a little uncalled for on Daniel's part, bringing it up.

"Why are you telling everyone? And nothing's wrong, we'll be back to normal soon enough. We fight, like, twice a day." Woojin replies, hooking his arm aroung Sungwoon neck.

"Jihoon is only our friend through you. If he does you wrong, we ain't gon' hesitate to cut a bitch." Daehwi pipes in. A few "ohhhh"s are released from Guanlin and cheers of support from the others.

"Please," Woojin says desperately, trying to assemble some sense of normalcy. This group of guys may seem cool when they dance but behind the scenes Woojin knows __ that they're a bunch of gossiping _ahjummas_. "No cutting of bitches. We're fine."

Somewhere further off, Woojin hears Seongwoo yelling. "Kang Daniel get your cat off my face!"

Daniel reaches above his head to scoop the feline into his arms. "Peter ah, stay with dad ok? That's why I brought you here."

"Wait... her name is Peter?"

" _His_ name is Peter." Daniel corrects.

"Dude I just had an involuntary close up of  _her_ undercarriage. I'm pretty sure it's a girl."

"Fuck off Seongwoo, no he's not."

Seongwoo huffs and drags himself to the lightswitch, flooding the studio with light and eliciting a chorus of complaints.

"Kang Daniel you don't believe me? You check."

"What the fuck is going on…" Daehwi whispers, shaking his head. "We're checking cat genitals at 1 am."

Woojin snorts. He's never hung out with the other members outside the studio, always turning them down in favour of solitude or his family, or Jihoon. It was just too much effort to maintain friendships. He'd never have thought they'd be this _weird_. Weird was good, it meant that they weren't ones for judgement, which was what kept Woojin up most nights.

"Oh my god." Daniel whispers. Woojin wonders if the girls were having as _interesting_  a time as they were.

Seongwoo switches the light back off. "See? I wasn't lying. I honestly think I'm not able to lie about something so _scarring_." He shivers.

Daniel has sunken into silence, probably over the fact that he's been oblivious of his cat's true gender for over a _year_.

Seongwoo, satisfied with being right, steers the conversation back to Woojin, much to the younger's dismay. "Ya anyway, Park Woojin, you better make up with him. You don't have any other friends." He jokes.

"I'll be your friend, hyung." Guanlin shoots him a gummy smile between the chaos, to which Woojin returns. A snore echoes between them and the two erupt into laughter.

"I think we should go to sleep too." Woojin proposes.

"Goodnight y'all!" Daniel shouts suddenly, stirring Sungwoon from his sleep.

"You're so fucking loud, Jesus." Seongwoo murmmers, rolling to face away from the Busan boy. "Use your indoor voice man."

"What the fuck…?" Their coach slurs, waking up from Daniel's booming voice. "I can't believe I fell asleep and missed all the sweet gossip. What'd I miss?"

Woojin shakes his head. "Forget it hyung, nothing happened." Rooney climbs between them, snuggling into Sungwoon's hair. The man pats it in return and Woojin turns away, willing himself to sleep.

\-----

Woojin must have fallen asleep eventually, as he wakes to a dull pressure in his lower abdomen. Sungwoon has returned to snoring next to him, now mixed in with the calming snores of several others.

He wiggles out of the sleeping bag, taking extra caution in making sure Sungwoon isn't jostled awake and pads towards the door. He leaves it ajar and heads to the common toilet.

The lights are on but Woojin's half-asleep mind doesn't register it. As he approaches, the door opens and Seoyeon jumps as Woojin lets out a little gasp.

"Oh god you scared me." Woojin says, breathing somewhat harder. Her hair is _barely_  in a loose ponytail and her eyes are bleary but Woojin somehow finds it endearing.

"I could say the same." Seoyeon puts a hand to her chest feeling the quick beating of her heart under her fingertips. She blushes as she realises something.

Woojin raises an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

Maybe it's the post-sleep drowsiness or, dare Woojin hope, her being comfortable around him, but she blurts out,

"I'm not wearing a bra." She blushes as soon as she says it, covering her face in regret. Woojin's eyes widen and he looks anywhere but her baggy top. There's a beat of incredibly awkward silence.

"It's ok. I'm not either." He says impulsively, trying to comfort her. He doesn't think he's doing a good job.

Yet it's true, he's _not_. If he's not expected to wear a bra, why should she? He likes to think himself a feminist but not to the point of compromising chivalry. He's misunderstood most of the time, honest statements taken as provocative jokes, and everything in the conversation seems to be pointing towards that reoccurance.

Except it _doesn't_ , she seems to love it.

Seoyeon chuckles, catching the meaning behind his words, breaking the awkward atmosphere. There's a fond smile on her lips as Woojin runs an embarrassed hand through his hair.

"You're really something else, Park Woojin." She says, face flushed.

Woojin grins. He nods politely in parting and slips into the toilet, shutting the door gently before releasing the biggest sigh. Woojin rubs his face vigorously, leaning against the now closed door.

The constant anxiety of not knowing when a conversation will turn is exhausting. The inability to bring a conversation back on track after a bad joke, or diversion of opinions, makes it that much worse.

_People in general are exhausting._

But it doesn't stop a smile from breaking out on his face. When was the last time his weirdly honest thought wasn't misunderstood? He doesn't remember. He can get used to this.

He has a sudden moment of self-awareness, smiling to himself in a bathroom at ass o'clock in the morning. He shakes his head and remembers why he came to the bathroom in the first place.

After he's done, he slips back into the studio, under the covers. He catches a glimpse of his refletion in the mirror with the limited light casting in from the streets below, and allows himself a moment of hope.

Instances like these give him faith that he'll one day find someone that understands him inside and out, knowing him better than he knows himself.

But it's always an isolated instance. He's never met a girl whose thoughts parallel his own. He see the downturn of his lips in the reflection and brings the sleeping bag up to his nose, covering Sungwoon completely.

He won't get his hopes up, not until he's _absolutely_ sure about this girl. He's never had high enough standards to be let down.

He has to be completely and utterly sure, or he may just end up crashing when it's all over.

 


	4. 4.

By the end of "dance camp" Woojin has grown closer to his studio mates and isn't afraid to call them friends as opposed to acquaintances. They create a groupchat that Seongwoo and Daniel spam with nonsense most of the time, followed by Sungwoon calling them out on their bullshit.

Woojin enjoys the banter but rarely contributes to it, choosing to take a backseat to the quality memes that Guanlin sends.

Jihoon catches him smiling down at his phone more than once, after they reconciled with a manly hug. That's the thing about Jihoon, Woojin's always confident it'll work out between them, no matter the argument.

"What… finally got a girlfriend?" Woojin scowls but indulges him in a Chinese meme that he has to translate to understand. Jihoon laughs before settling into a small smile.

"It's nice to see that you've got other friends." Woojin grins at the older boy. They both know he has a hard time with people. Finding ones that were kind enough to accept a socially inept person like Woojin was rare.

"They're good people." He replies instead. They both know what he means.

The two were lying on Woojin's bed, back at his house, scrolling through their phones. They were supposed to search up more on UoS but distract each other to no end. Regardless, based on the little knowledge they've found out, Woojin is impressed, he didn't know much about the school going in but it seemed decent enough. Even Jihoon seemed to warm up to the idea.

"Woojin?" Yerim pops her head into the room.

"Yeah?" He replies.

"Hi Yerimmmmmm." Jihoon says without taking his eyes off his phone. Woojin's sister burns bright red.

"Hi." She replies curtly, she's just as bad as her brother around attractive people. "Anyway, Woojin, BTS has a new song, you wanna watch it with me?"

Jihoon's head perks up. "Really? Let's go." He grabs Woojin's arm, trailing after Yerim who leads them to the living room. There, her laptop was connnected to the TV and the thumbnail for the video was showing.

She plays the video and Jihoon whoops. "Yerim ah, who's your favourite."

"Yoongi." She says shyly. Jihoon leans over to Woojin.

"Who's that?" He whispers.

"Suga?" Jihoon gives him a blank look. "You're such a fake fan. He's..." He points when the boy appears onscreen. "That one."

Jihoon squints his eyes, thinking, then shrugs. "I only really like V. He's cute."

"That's debatable, you see, I think that Jungkook looks the best." Woojin focuses on the screen.

"Like, out of all the people you know, you'd pick Jungkook?"

"No. Just BTS." Woojin ponders and looks at his companion. "I mean, I think you're the most attractive person I know."

Jihoon looks at him, scandalized.

 _Like he doesn't know how pretty he is_  Woojin thinks sarcastically.

"Yea that's because, you don't know a lot of people." Woojin laughs and playfully punches Jihoon. "I think I'd choose… I don't know... Fuck, why are we taking this so seriously." Jihoon snaps out of it and laughs.

Yerim shoots them a dirty look and only then does Woojin realise the video has ended. "You guys are so noisy." She shakes her head and walks off with her laptop. "I'm watching this without you."

Jihoon has a cheeky smile on his face.

"What." Woojin asks.

"I don't think I've ever seen your sister mad at me." Jihoon laughs. "I think I'm being taken over by Suga."

"I don't think her crush is going away anytime soon, you may not be number one anymore but you're definitely still up there."

Jihoon grins, pleased.

"She was the one who kept pushing me to make up with you." Woojin states, turning toward Jihoon on the couch.

The other boy faces him as well, "Maybe she just knows you want us to be friends again."

"Yea… but it's more likely she's in love with you." Woojin grins cheekily as Jihoon pouts. "I approve, if you can put up with me, you can definitely put up with her."

Jihoon scrunches his nose, "Maybe in, like, 8 years time."

"Ya!" Woojin smacks him on the shoulder. "You should be rejecting it with your entirety."

"I-I mean. Ew. Gross. Never in my life." Jihoon plays along.

"Excuse me." Woojin shoots him a mock glare. "What do mean gross? As my sibling, that, by extension means _I_  am also gross. You better watch yourself _Park_."

There's a beat of silence as they exchange glances, then they're breaking out into giggles. As the laughter dies down, Woojin recognises the look on Jihoon's face, that weird mix of nostalgia that has yet to come.

"I was really sad when we were fighting." Jihoon says. "I kept worrying that we would never be friends again. It's like, whenever something good happened I'd turn to you and shout about how exciting it is but you weren't there." He pouts and reaches over to bring Woojin into a hug. "I looked like such an idiot."

"It was the same for me if you're wondering." Woojin doesn't elaborate because there's nothing more to say. If anything, he just had more faith in their relationship mending itself than Jihoon did.

"That's good…" Jihoon mumbles into his shoulder. "I think? Does this mean we're too reliant on each other?"

Woojin shrugs and bumps into Jihoon's mouth.

"Ow…"

Jihoon was always the talker in their relationship, Woojin tries his hardest but he can never find the right words for what he's feeling. It's a good thing he feels pretty similarly to Jihoon. And that boy is eloquent with words.

Even so, there are still things left unsaid on Woojin's end, things that he _can_ describe but chooses not to as it could harm the dynamics of their relationship. Like how Jihoon's teasing about Woojin's lack of romantic relationships makes him feel inadequate. He wonders if Jihoon has anything he keeps to himself too.

"Sorry."

Jihoon sighs and takes his hand. "It's ok, as long as you never leave me."

Woojin is familiar with this speech, it usually comes post-breakup, although this time, it was slightly delayed by other more pressing matters.

Jihoon face changes into a scowl surprisingly quickly. "Can't believe she broke up with me over text. If you ever want to stop being my friend, I know I can be a handful at times… I won't stop you, just do it in person at least?"

Woojin nods. That's something he can agree with, the insecurity of being too much to handle, not expressing his appreciation for the other boy enough, his own fear of Jihoon leaving. He just doesn't voice it out. He doesn't know _how_. Which leads to him feeling bad again. It's a vicious, unending cycle.

"Well, since you brought it up and I'm here with you now…" Woojin starts, slowing breaking out into a grin.

It's Jihoon's turn to wack him on the shoulder, "Yah! I take it back. You have to be my friend forever, I don't care if you like it or not."

This weird future nostalgia thing usually worries Woojin, but he lets his brain relax this one time. He knows it means that Jihoon is over the whole university fiasco and has moved on to smaller, more manageable problems. The boy _does_ have a few nasty breakups under his belt, after all, and he's still alive.

Woojin just grins at him in reply.

Jihoon has a discontented look on his face, he fiddles with Woojin's hair.

"You need a redye."

"Yeah. I do. Maybe before we go to Uni?"

Jihoon nods in agreement. "Maybe I should dye my hair too. I kinda wanna have pink hair." He twirls a strand of hair around his fingers. "Do you think they'll judge me?"

Woojin shrugs. "Why does it matter?" It's easier said than done. Woojin may be a bit of a hypocrite.

"It just does, man."

"Well, probably at first. But once they look past that pretty face of yours and the pink hair and really get to know you, they'll probably realise you're manlier than most." He responds analytically.

"I think that's the nicest thing you've said to me." Jihoon wipes a fake tear away.

"Let's go to an actual salon this time." He continues. "I wanna make a good first impression."

Woojin agrees easily enough. Jihoon looks at the clock and the blank TV. Woojin follows his gaze and realises how easy it is hanging out with Jihoon. Time flies just like that.

"I should be going, dinner's at 7." It was 7.09pm. Woojin snorts and shoves the shorter boy out of his house without so much as a goodbye.

He flops back-first onto the couch, only then realising how much he had missed the other.


	5. 5.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super overdue but I'll be posting the next chapter too

Woojin pokes his head into the frozen yogurt joint, it was mid afternoon in the business district and it was pouring out, which resulted in an empty shop.

Seoyeon had said in passing how she worked at a frozen yoghurt place and that Woojin should drop by sometime. It wasn't far from his house and he had loads of free time, but overthinking stopped him everytime he tried to leave his house. It wasn't until Yerim physically pushed him out the door that he finds himself there.  
  
He hesitantly presses the bell at the counter and Seoyeon's head pops up from the backroom.

She grins as soon as she sees it's him.

"Hiiiii." She smiles shyly and bounds up to the counter. "What can I get you?"

"Hey." He smiles not sparing a glance to the menu. "What's good here?"

"Well… the dark chocolate's pretty good. Made from authentic belgium chocolate, it has 50% less sugar than our milk chocolate flavour." She spewls in a rehearsed manner.

Woojin chuckles. "You don't have to convince me, I'll eat whatever you recommend."

Seoyeon grins. "Size?"

Woojin chooses the smallest one and Seoyeon dispenses it from the machine.

"You don't see many independent frozen yoghurt places around." Woojin starts. "It looks good."

"Toppings?"

Woojin shakes his head but Seoyeon sticks half a strawberry in. "For coming to see me."

She rings him up and the numbers that display on the screen hurt Woojin's pocket.

"Wow… that is expensive."

She continues pressing buttons, "hold up, you get a discount since you're my friend."

Woojin feels his wallet sigh in a relief and forks over the cash.

"I wouldn't eat here if it weren't for that discount, not gonna lie."

"Me neither. I just work here."

Woojin laughs awkwardly. "So… are you joining me or are you busy?" He half sits, half stands above a chair.

"Actually, I'm ending soon, you came at a pretty bad time."

"Oh…" he pops a scoop of yoghurt in his mouth. It was _alright_. "I mean… it could be a good time? If you go out with me after you're done…?" He smiles his best smile. (I kinda imagine that little smile Woojin sent Daniel so he'd share his lunch with him)

Seoyeon laughs at his ridiculous face. "I thought you'd never ask." Woojin didn't think his smile could get any wider but it does.

"Is there anything you wanna do in particular?"

She shrugs. "It doesn't really matter. I just kinda wanna hang out with you maybe?"

"Oh" his face grows solemn. "then this," he gestures between the both of them "isn't gonna work out."

Seoyeon's delighted expression breaks and Woojin almost feels bad.

"I'm only going out with you if it's a date." He continues.

_oh my god you sound like such a fuckboi_

Seoyeon scowls and steps out from behind the counter just to smack him.

_I deserve that_

"But yes, it's a date."

* * *

  
They go for a movie at the nearby cinema, Seoyeon paying for their tickets with her gift voucher.

"I'll pay for dinner. Promise." Woojin swears. He's may be a cheapskate but he's also a gentleman.

They decide to watch the new Solo movie despite not knowing anything about Star wars. Woojin has no idea what's going on, which could also be half due to the fact that he was thinking up ways to hold Seoyeon's hand. Everytime he musters up the courage however, it disappears just as quickly whenever what Woojin assumes is an important scene pops-up.

"I have no idea what's going on." He blurts honestly, halfway through the movie, giving up on both figuring out the plot and physical contact.

"I'm not gonna lie… me neither." She replies. They chuckle lowly and Woojin looks over at her. Their gazes meet and the flashing lights from the screen are distracting, but not enough for him to look away.

She continues watching the movie but her hand is on his and her head is on his shoulder now.

He can feel the hesitancy behind her touch, her worry of being too straightforward. Despite that, Woojin doesn't make an effort to turn his palm around and grasp her hand, too stunned to even process the situation. Seoyeon looks up to him and raises an eyebrow, anxious.

"Uh…"

She gigles and _wow_  she should not be allowed to laugh so close to his face.

"What?" She asks, sitting up straight, much to Woojin's disappointment.

"You're just really pretty." He says. It's true.

"You're just really pretty too." She mimics, grinning at him adoringly. She turns his palm around and slips her fingers between his. Oh god his hands are sweating.

"You're a bit of an odd one, y'know? Park Woojin."

Woojin laughs, because he's heard that countless times. "Yeah, I know." He rolls his eyes.

"But I kinda like it." She says plainly. Something about the cover of darkness and the quiet whisper of their voices makes Woojin bold.

He unlatches his hand from hers and even in the lack of light Woojin knows she's frowning. But once he reaches to cup her cheek he can feel her grin returning.

"Can I kiss you?" He asks before his 5 seconds of courage dissolves.

There's a beat of silence, the air filled with apprehension. She answers in the form of her soft lips on his. It's sweet and short, but it takes his breath away nonetheless.

"Yeah cool. Mhmm. Totally." He mumbles against her lips and she bursts out laughing, to which the man in front shushes them and the moment is lost. Woojin forgets that a whole world exists outside their bubble.

"I'm super hungry… you wanna just leave?" Woojin checks his watch and feels like an idiot because he can't see anything.

"Sure. I'm pretty hungry too."

They sit, waiting for the other to get up first.

"I'm scared. Is this like disrespecting the movie or something?" Seoyeon asks, looking around. They were right smack in the middle of the theatre.

"I don't think so, right? It's all about your intention. It's not a _bad_  show. We just don't follow Star Wars and I'm incredibly _i_ _ntent_ on eating right now." Woojin answers but still doesn't stand.

"Huh. Is that _so_?" She asks sarcastically and stands, hand still grasped firmly in his, she drags him out. The way nobody seems to care about them leaving, in addition to having needed Seoyeon lead him out hurts Woojin's ego a bit.

They're still holding hands as they step out of rhe cinema. The darkness kept it somewhat surreal but the light makes their interlaced fingers all the more concrete. It makes Woojin blush, which in turn makes Seoyeon laugh and drag him closer.

"What you wanna eat?" She asks.

Woojin shrugs. "I'm fine with anything."

"There's a pretty good Italian place downstairs?"

"Sure." Woojin can already tell who'll wear the pants in this relationship. _If it happens._

They eat a quick dinner, that Woojin pays for, as he has work in the morning. He regrets getting the aglio olio with the sheer volume of herbs getting stuck in his teeth, but taste wise it was definitely worth it.

After which, they share a tiramisu dessert that Seoyeon recommends and Woojin eats about half a forkful, discovering Seoyeon's sweet tooth.

"I feel like I ate a lot more than you…" Seoyeon says halfway through. Woojin isn't like Jihoon, who wouldn't even be up for the idea of sharing, he finds it cute instead. He likes a girl that can eat.

"It's ok. Just finish it off, I'm really full." She does.

Woojin settles the bill, and they walk towards the closest subway station, all within 2 hours of entering.

Going on opposite sides of the platform, Woojin finds it faintly difficult to part with the girl after spending most of the day with her.

"I had a good time today." She says, arms reaching around his waist for a hug.

Woojin hugs her back. "Me too."

She releases slightly, arms still around him but enough to see his face. She leans in to peck his lips quickly as her train arrives.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to that." Woojin splutters out as she turns to leave, a laugh leaving her lips.

"Then don't!" She turns back with a fond smile, mirroring Woojin's own. He can't help but stare at her even after the doors close and the train departs.

He hears the thundering of wheels behind him and turns around just as his own train leaves.

"Damn it."


	6. 6.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A filler chapter, I mean, all my chapters are filler chapters this is a filler story. At least Jihoon is here!

Woojin honestly didn't think of letting Jihoon know so early, wanting to make things official first, but Seoyeon must have missed him as much as he missed her, because she visits him at work the next day.

Woojin works in a stationery shop that only has one chair but a low enough counter for Jihoons to slide onto.

One such Jihoon taking his rightful place on the counter at that particular moment.

"Dude get off my counter." Woojin says, for the 100th time since the start of his shift.

"Dude I'm surprise you can even see over the counter in that flimsy ass chair of yours." Jihoon deflects, swinging his legs back and forth. "Besides, I brought you macaroons, be grateful."

"It's pronounced _macaroons_."

"In my entire life, I've probably talked twice, maybe more, than you have but it seems that the things that come out of your mouth are higher in value than mine." He says sarcastically.

"Quality over quantity." Woojin interjects.

"All I'm trying to say is… I don't really give a fuck how you pronounce it. I give a fuck about how my bestfriend is the least appreciative piece of shit in this store." He shoves a red macaroon in Woojin's mouth. "Now feel the gratitude. Feel it flow through you. It tastes good doesn't it?"

Woojin closes his eyes and plays along, humming in agreement. They seem to realise what they're doing a beat too late.

"We're so fucking weird." Jihoons says and Woojin is cracking up, red staining his teeth.

He still has a few leftover chuckles when the door opens and Woojin finds himself stretching to see over the counter, not used to welcoming customers often.

He makes eye contact with Seoyeon and jerks from shock, just enough for one of the plastic legs of the chair to fold underneath his weight and snap.

Woojin sits red-faced on his ass.

" _oh my god_ the sacred chair." Jihoon hops off the counter and laughs in Woojin's face, not even offering a hand to help him up.

"Shit I didn't see her face. Is she really pretty or something? How did you break a 30 year old chair."

Woojin stands and dusts himself off. "Exactly, it's a 30 year old chair..." Woojin mumbles, kicking what's left of the chair to the corner. He'll clean it later.

Jihoon assumes the girl has stalked to some far corner of the shop, who in actuality is standing right behind him.

He gets a shock when he turns, and decides to join Woojin behind the counter.

"She's kinda cute. I think I get why you fell." He whispers under his breath as Woojin says, "how may I help you?"

"I'm looking for a certain Woojin? By the brand of Park? Tends to fall off chairs?" She answers teasingly bouncing on her toes.

Woojin blushes and hopes that Jihoon doesn't notice.

"Ahhh, the Park brand, definitely one of quality. Park Jihoon at your service." She shakes his outstretched hand with a grin.

Woojin nudges his bestfriend, "You're so full of shit man."

"If by shit you mean, _charm_ , then I agree." He wiggles his eyebrows before pausing and puffing out a breath. He shakes his head, blushing behind his bangs, "that was cringey."

Woojin shakes his head at Jihoon's sudden shy demeanor. They were like polar opposites, the two of them, Woojin overthinking everything and Jihoon acting, more often than not, on impulse.

"So… why are you here?" Woojin rocks on his heels, suddenly awkward.

Seoyeon has her hands tucked into the pockets of her oversized hoodie. She looks cute. "What. I can't see my friend?" She leans over the counter and lands a peck on Woojin's panicked form.

Something felt held back, probably due to the fact that Jihoon was gazing at them in confusion.

"Wait… are you his girlfriend?"

Woojin and Seoyeon exchange glances. She has a teasing smile on, raising her eyebrows at Woojin in question.

It takes a while for Woojin to interpret the eyebrow raise but he does eventually.

_Am I your girlfriend?_

_Fuck it_. Woojin thinks.

"Yea she is."

The smile that breaks across Seoyeon face, _G_ _od_.

"Damn. Why didn't you tell me, man?" Woojin shrugs and mumbles an incoherent answer but Jihoon brushes it off, more interested in this girl he vaguely recognizes.

There's a look of slight disbelief on Jihoon's face, he laughs, "This guy…. I had to approach him like 5 times before he spoke more than 3 words to me. What did you do to ask him out?"

Seoyeon blushes and glances at Woojin who intercepts the question for himself.

"Actually, I asked her out."

Jihoon is surprised, which is new to Woojin, it's a huge contrast from his usual unfazed, composed demeanor in front of anyone besides, well, _Woojin_.

"Oh really?" There's something off about his tone of voice, he swallows and smiles at Seoyeon, but there aren't any crinkles around his eyes.

"He must really like you."

As far as Woojin can tell, Seoyeon doesn't notice his change of behaviour and Jihoon himself doesn't seem to realise that Woojin realises. It's a confusing situation.

Jihoon remains relatively withdrawn the rest of the five minute conversation, only answering questions posed at him but never asking any himself.

Seoyeon sighs, "I've got to get going anyway, I just stopped by to say hi. It was nice meeting you Jihoon!" She steps behind the counter to squeeze Woojin into a quick hug and waves as she leaves.

"You too!" Jihoon replies before being nudged by Woojin.

"What's wrong? You don't like her or something?"

Jihoon pouts but shakes his head.

"Ya, we both know you're gonna tell me anyway so let's save time."

"I just… I thought you were like that to everyone."

"Huh?" Woojin cocks his head.

"Y'know… I thought you had a hard time warming up to people. Or was it just me?" Jihoon scoffs crossing his arms, a light pout resting in his lips. Woojin can't help but grin, the older boy was so much more animated than anyone he knew.

"You were the first one. That's why. After I realised what a _wondeful_  thing it is, having a friend. I was more willing to open up." Woojin says, equal parts sarcastic and genuine.

He puts his elbow on Jihoon's shoulder swinging it to knock him in the face gently.

"Tch. You're so annoying. Can't you see I'm feeling down?" Jihoon frowns and eyes Woojin. "And when did you get taller than me?"

The snaggletooth makes an appearance as Woojin continues pushing his buttons by placing his other elbow on Jihoon's other shoulder.

"It's probably that damn snaggletooth, nobody in their right mind would want to go out with you otherwise."

Woojin drops his arms. And looks at his reflection in the display for high-end calculators. "I was actually thinking of getting braces."

"Do they affect the way you eat?" Jihoon asks.

"What. No. I don't think so? I mean I've only had this set of teeth my entire life how am I supposed to compare proper eating to improper eating." Woojin replies, perplexed.

"Then don't change it. I can't imagine you with straight teeth. You wouldn't be Woojin the dumbass, you'd be Woojin, student body president."

"That's such bullshit."

"Does it bother you? For real."

"Well I don't know. It's just… you've got straight teeth, Seoyeon has such nice teeth. I feel like whenever someone thinks of a snaggletooth they think of me. Like Woojin equals guy with snaggletooth. Y'know what I mean?"

"Why would it matter if people associate you with your snaggletooth? It's cute, not some incurable disease. And you seem to overestimate it. People usually equate Woojin to _quiet guy that only has one friend and if I_ really _had to choose, the one person who's most likely to shoot up the school._ "

"That's… oddly specific."

"Besides, when did you start caring about what other people thought of you? That's my thing, get your own thing." Woojin laughs. Sometimes when he laughs, he remembers he has a fucked up tooth and gets pretty conscious of it.

"Besides." Jihoon continues, " _I_  like it. Shouldn't my opinion be worth more than those strangers? I'm pretty sure Seoyeon loves it too."

Woojin runs his tongue over his teeth. "Why do you like it?"

"I don't know, it makes you look… naughty."

"Oooh kinky."

"Shut up. You know what I mean, it makes you look as if you're not like the rest of us." Jihoon answers honestly. Woojin stays silent, knowing Jihoon had more to say.

"Which you aren't." He continues softly, staring up at him. Woojin flashes a snaggletoothed smile at his sincerity.

"Ok, I'll keep it then." He smiles sweetly at Jihoon, fluttering his eyelashes and earning an eyeroll from the older boy.

"You just _had_  to ruin the moment." Jihoon shakes his head before groaning and lying down on the counter.

"I don't wanna go to schoooooool." He whines suddenly.

"What the fuck." Woojin says out of impulse, before bursting into laughter. Jihoon seems to realise his oddly spontaneous behaviour as well before chuckling in embarrassment. He lays a hand over his chest. "At least I have you with me."

"Oh yeah, Seoyeon's going there too." Woojin says off-handedly.

"No way! Your cute girlfriend's coming too?" Jihoon provokes.

"You wanna catch these hands?" Woojin stares him down and takes up a boxing stance, bouncing from foot to foot.

Jihoon makes a disgusted face at his real-life meme usage. "Urgh I take it back. You're gross."

Woojin barks out a laugh as the older boy continues. "You wanna be roommates?"

Woojin shrugs. "I mean. If you want to."

But Jihoon reads him better than most people and deciphers the true meaning behind Woojin's words in mere seconds.

There's a tinge of hurt laced in his voice. "Why not?"

Woojin scratches the back of his neck. When did it get so hard to lie to Jihoon? "I just, I don't know, I kinda wanna meet new people. I think? I feel like it's about time. A new start right?"

Jihoon nods slowly. "I guess that makes sense. It's a good opportunity." He sits up again. "I'm glad you're doing this. I'm proud of you." If anyone else had said it, Woojin would have taken it as a sarcastic insult, but this was Jihoon, who was incapable of lying.

"I just hope it works out."

"Even if it doesn't, I'm glad you're putting in the effort to try. Besides, if all else fails, you have me." Jihoon says, bumping his chest and grinning.

Woojin rolls his eyes but feels his poker face cracking. Jihoon smiles wider upon seeing his upturned lips.

There's the ringing of the door again and a swarm of high schoolers rush in, ice cream cones in hand. A few are giggling, which Woojin understands is the direct cause of being in viewing range of a certain Park Jihoon.

"Paying together?"

The boy nods. "We all got the same one." Woojin does a visual confirmation before scanning a single cone and multiplying it by 12.

"That'll be $17."

The boy quirks an eyebrow but forks the money over. "That's not divisible by 12?"

"You get a 20% discount for being students." This garners the attention of most of them.

The boy lights up. It's cute. "Nice! Is it just ice cream?"

Woojin shakes his head. "Storewide. You can check it out." He nods over to the rest of the store. The group disperses throughout the store slowly.

"Can we… eat in here?" The boy asks timidly.

"Er…" Woojin gazes into space and the CCTV. "Yeah. Fuck it. Just don't get any on the stationery."

The boy thanks them quickly before shuffling behind his friends who didn't even bother asking.

"Dude that's like, your sales for the day met." Jihoon says sarcastically, giving him a high five. Woojin didn't have to reach any sort of sales point but before Jihoon came up with ways to attract people, the amount of money they made was barely enough to cover rent and Woojin's wages.

"All thanks to you man. I can't believe Mr Lee actually listened to you and started selling ice cream."

Jihoon shrugs cockily. "Who doesn't love ice cream."

"And the student discount thing is brilliant too. I was so worried this place would close after I left but business is more than twice of what we used to earn."

Jihoon rolls his eyes, blushing slightly, kicking his legs against the cabinet under the counter.

The bell rings again and Mr Lee walks in. Mr Lee is a single man in his 60s and the owner of the bookstore. He's cool and nice to Woojin, which was enough to put him in his good books.

"Is this the boy? With all the bright ideas?" Mr Lee asks, overexcited smile on his face. Woojin nods. He looks at the students milling about the shop and Woojin could almost sense the pride he felt. He steps behind the counter to check the sales from that day and slides an envelope to Woojin.

"Share this with Jihoon ah, Woojin. He's the reason you're getting paid at all." Woojin scowls playfully while Jihoon snorts and extends a hand to the older gentleman, sliding off the counter.

"Thanks Mr Lee, but I'm good. Just glad your shop's doing well."

Mr Lee smiles at him in adoration, patting his back. "You should work here instead of Woojin ah."

"Ya!" Woojin shouts but they all know he's kidding. Jihoon smiles behind his bangs.

"Ah… are they eating in the store?" Mr Lee changes the subject, dejectedly peering over the shelves towards the crowd of students at the back. "I'll let it pass this once, as long as they buy something." He eyes Woojin, who smiles sheepishly.

They _do_  end up buying, more than half of them interested in discounted calculators. It's probably the most they've ever earned, which is pretty sad.

"Is your friend joining us for dinner today Woojin?" For the past two and a half years, Mr Lee had consistently brought Woojin out for dinner on payday, which came once a month.

Jihoon starts his protests but Woojin cuts him off. "Of course! If you don't mind." Jihoon frowns at him.

"Anything for my favourite employee"

Woojin suppresses the urge to say that he's the _only_  employee.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: they go out for dinner feat. Drunk Jihoon.


	7. 7

Jihoon has gotten drunk before.

Woojin comes to the realisation as soon as Mr Lee decides that alcohol was a must have as two 20 year olds.

They were seated at a street stall close to Mr Lee's house. It was always easier for Woojin to drag himself home after their dinners, he had more self control when it came to alcohol.

"Why are you being so shy?" Mr Lee downs his soju glass and Woojin instantly half stands to fill it up. "This is a once in a lifetime experience Jihoon, me treating you. I only do it for Woojin usually, but I'll let it slip this one time so let loose ok? Don't worry too much, everything's on me tonight."

Jihoon blushes and whispers to Woojin, "Why does it feel like I'm doing something illegal?" He turns toward Woojin and takes a tentative sip of soju behind the redhead's back, eyeing the man warily. "It's not like I've never done this before, and I'm of age."

Woojin casually turns away from his elder, drinks half of his beer and burps. "I think I'm _too_ comfortable with this. He's actually the first person I drank with." Jihoon quirks an eyebrow at the younger boy.

Mr Lee laughs. "You didn't tell me you weren't legal yet! This boy ah… the first time I brought him to dinner, he was so shy, he didn't dare reject my drink even though he was underage!"

Jihoon barks out a laugh. "That's the Woojin I know. Awkward to the point of being painful."

"I only told him I never drank before once the nausea from drinking started to outweigh the nausea from awkwardness." Woojin mutters, embarrassed. "I was seriously going to puke. It was excruciating."

It's funny in hindsight, but at that point in his life, his social anxiety was probably the worse it had ever been. He couldn't even reject dinner itself, much less being picky about beverages.

"On the bright side, you know your tolerance now." Jihoon says and the three laugh at past Woojin's expense, which, unfortunately, is a common occurence.

"Once he became 20, I had to convince him that drinking wasn't _bad._ He just needed time to figure out what he likes." Mr Lee starts.

"Mhmm." Woojin hums in agreement, finishing his beer.

"And he's been drinking every time we've been out since." Mr. Lee continues. He pushes the soju cup to Jihoon. "Now it's your turn. I've taught Woojin well, he'll guide you through your drinking journey in university."

Jihoon downs the shot in one go and Mr Lee cheers alongside Woojin. There's a satisfied smile on Mr Lee's face.

"I'll miss you, the shop won't be the same. But I'm glad you're both studying hard." He ruffles their hair with both hands. "Become smarter than me ok? I know that's not difficult, you're probably already smarter than me, but do your best and be good." It's directed to both of them but Mr Lee has his gaze fixed on Woojin.

For the longest time, Woojin's had an inkling that Mr. Lee considers him a son. Unlike his parents, it feels good to have someone _choose_  you, out of all the other billion kids in the world to be your child. It's burdensome, but Woojin hasn't let him down just yet.

He sends a reassuring smile back to Mr Lee. "Don't worry Mr Lee, if we dropout we can always work at the bookstore." Mr Lee smacks his head through laughter.

"You can't live on 6000 won an hour."

"Exactly. I need a raise."

Mr Lee chuckles, "I wish I could give you a raise but I actually have a house to pay back, unlike you."

Jihoon laughs but it sounds weird. Woojin turns left to find the boy filling up his beer glass. The soju bottle sits empty next to it

"Yo… Jihoon, maybe you should slow down." He pries the glass from his hands and exchanges it with the tongs for barbecuing.

" _Ok mom_." He retorts sarcastically, jabbing the meat half heartedly.

"Wah… this boy. I thought he was all naive but he can really drink! Woojin you need to watch out for your friend before he corrupts you with that innocent face of his." Woojin turns to Jihoon, who has a dopey smile on his face. _C_ _ute._

"Gross." He says, more in response to his own thoughts than Jihoon's face.

He's aware that there are some childhood friends Jihoon meets up with occasionally, and they are _not entirely wholesome_ , as Jihoon had spilled at one of their rare sleepovers in a rant about teenage rebellion and how overrated it was.

What Woojin failed to realise, is that Jihoon seemingly partook in these activities when he was in their company, despite complaining about how _dumb_ it was.

"Let's make some soju bombs." The older boy says, pushing the tongs to Woojin and prepping whatever he needs. Mr Lee willingly agrees and orders a few more bottles of soju.

"Jihoon, I didn't know you drink." Woojin voices. When did he stop knowing everything about the other boy's life?

"Only once in a while." Jihoon is perpetually giggly. "I can't hold my liquor well."

* * *

Woojin drags a drunk Jihoon to his own home upon getting into a cab and realising that he doesn't know Jihoon's actual address, only how to get there on foot.

"Jihoon. What's your address."

"147 Seoul, Korea." He giggles.

Woojin wants to be angry about Jihoon's utter lack of self control but the older boy is about as full of _aegyo_  as he is soju.

"That's-." Woojin chuckles. "Forget it."

The journey back isn't long, but Woojin wishes it were, he feels a lot more detached than most dinners with Mr Lee. Jihoon has sweet lips that could convince Woojin to drink just about anything.

They pull up to his house too quickly, and the cab fare too high, but Woojin thinks of his free dinner and drinks that should make up for it.

They stumble up to the door, Jihoon alternating between leaning heavily on Woojin and almost falling the other way. Woojin struggles to find his keys but the door swings open before he does, revealing his mum.

"Hi mum." Woojin says pulling her in for a quick side hug. She "tch"s but returns the hug anyway.

Jihoon giggles from behind him.

"Hi mum." He copies once Woojin has let go, hugging her as well.

There's amusement on her face, but she entertains the drunk boy, hugging him back. "Hi Jihoon." She untagles her arms from him but he refuses to let go.

"Park Jihoon, stop touching my mother." Woojin slurs and struggles to pry the boy off, a goofy smile resting on the older's face.

Woojin manages to detach the boy from his mother, who leaves them to their own devices.

Woojin's mum wasn't a particularly strict mother in the way she wasn't really a mother at all. She loves him, but sometimes Woojin wishes she had the same discipline with him that she has with his sister. He's just glad he turned out a decent guy without much guidance from her, he's seen what boys can do unsupervised.

It's a problem that Woojin feels he's alone in thinking: the idea that mothers shouldn't discipline their sons because they hold more precedence over girls, regardless of age.

Woojin hates the term _boys will be boys_. It's no reason to be a prick.

He makes a mental note to bring this up with Jihoon once he's sober, he loves these kinds of social debate. He probably just likes debating in general. Or arguing.

"I'm hungry." The boy in question pipes up from beside him, running his hand along the corridor wall.

"We just ate what's wrong with you?" Woojin's in the process of dragging him to his room upstairs and doesn't understand why he bothers replying when Jihoon was so obviously out of it.

"I like eating." Jihoon pouts and stands rooted to the ground, midway up the flight of stairs. Woojin tugs him a few times with no success.

"Jihoon c'mon." He sighs, letting go. He's giving up for 2 seconds, then he'll be back at it, _promise_. It's tiring when his body is on its way to shutting down too. He looks at the older boy, no longer lost in the euphoria of intoxication but in a more wistful state. He fiddles with his fingers.

"I had sex with Minji."

Woojin loses his footing on a step. " _Christ_."

"It was bad." He says in a small voice. He looks lost.

It's a revelation. They've never had this conversation before and it doesn't feel right how Jihoon gets loose lipped with a couple of drinks in him. Woojin wonders if he discloses personal information to all the people he drinks with.

He collects himself. "Jihoon ah. Let's just, take a shower. Yeah? Showers are nice." He really can't deal with this now.

Woojin bets that if he were more sober, Jihoon would already be dressed and in bed. He blames it on Jihoon's otherworldly persuasion skills.

Drunk Jihoon is fun but kinda scary, Woojin finds, fluctuating between manic and depressive moods with surprising swiftness. There's the lack of grey area that sober Jihoon usually exists in.

The older boy's gaze settles somewhere far off, his body no longer resisting Woojin's tugging.

"Ok." But there's no conviction in his voice, tone weak and shoulders heavy.

Jihoon passes Woojin by on the stairs, dragging his feet to the toilet. The door clicks before Woojin has fully grasped the situation.

He drags himself to his room anyway, forcing his mind to focus on the present. He pulls out a set of pjs for Jihoon and sets it on the bed, the distant sound of puking grabbing his attention.

He walks across the hallway and knocks gently. "Jihoon ah, are you ok?"

There's a light gag before he responds. "Yeah, much better now."

Woojin sits outside the bathroom, the sound of running water in the background, and allows himself to chase his curiosity.

Was this a common occurrence, being physically intimate with his partner? Woojin thought the boy would _tell_  him if he was. Guess not. Why didn't he like it? Did he not want to do it?

Woojin grows irate at a thought. Was he _forced_  into it? Woojin likes to think himself a feminist, in the classical sense, none of that modern feminazi bullshit, which is why he entertains the possibility of a girl manipulating Jihoon into sleeping with her.

Jihoon is smart, but he's also too kind for his own good. Woojin grabs a fistful of hair, the idea of being _touched_ inappropriately freaks him out.

He sighs. It's different though, between him and Jihoon. The boy enjoyed skinship, and Woojin knew that he had a sexual… _drive_. Unlike the older boy, Woojin rarely indulged in such _activities_ , choosing instead to sleep when no one was home.

It makes him feel inexperienced and naive, which he hates, but it's _true_. He's never been in a relationship before, he doesn't know exactly what it entails behind closed doors and he's never had the urge to find out.

_Maybe when this thing with Seoyeon gets serious._

There's the light click of the bathroom door unlocking and Woojin's painfully aware of the red on his cheeks. His darker skin makes him less susceptible to Asian Flush, he can only hope it's the same for embarrassment.

If Jihoon notices, he chooses to ignore it. "Get in there, you stink."

Jihoon waddles to his bedroom, towel wrapped under his armpits. It would've been a funny sight if Woojin wasn't so distracted.

He escapes into the stream of hot water and wills his thoughts to wash away.

Should he bring all these questions up later? Did Jihoon spill it on impulse? What if he's trying to be consoled?

"Argh."

Woojin shampoos his hair a bit too hard.


	8. 8.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tickle fightttt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be clear, I had yet to watch the star road episode when I wrote this chapter so I didn't know Jihoon's not ticklish. But its cute hahahaha so please excuse the real life loophole.

After stepping out of the steam filled room, brushing his teeth and using mouthwash _twice_ , he returns to his air conditioned room, where Jihoon has taken to sitting on his desk chair.

"Dude why are you sitting on my chair. You can lie on my bed." Woojin says, drying his hair with a towel.

Jihoon swivels left and right. "I didn't want to… intrude." He waves his arm in the air, eyes never leaving his phone.

"What. Just because it's after 10pm you've suddenly become polite? You don't seem to give a shit eveytime I invite you over after school."

Jihoon looks up and chuckles. "It's because you always tell me to get off your bed. I'm a rebel."

"Ok then… get off my bed." Woojin deadpans.

Jihoon immediately springs up and deadass flings himself onto Woojin's bed. Giggling as he buries himself under the blankets.

"And here I thought you changed your shameless ways." Woojin clicks his tongue as Jihoon gets comfortable.

The weight in his chest and eyelids has returned, they've both sobered up. Woojin settles on the chair that Jihoon was on. The older boy stills his shuffling, finally finding a comfortable position.

The static in the air fills Woojin with a sense of peace.

"About just now… sorry to lay that on you. I know you don't really like talking about sex things." Jihoon says it so casually that Woojin finds himself self-conscious at the amount of thought he's put into Jihoon's sex life.

"It's ok. I don't actually mind. If you have anything on your mind, you can tell me. That's what bestfriends do, put aside their own discomfort for the betterment of the friendship."

Jihoon gulps, his eyes closed. His mouth forms the beginnings of a sentence a few times, but always snaps close before words come out.

"It's ok if you don't want to talk about it."

"I do… I do. It's just. Painfully awkward." Jihoon chortles once. "She wasn't my first time. God. I've never told anyone this. Not even my girlfriends."

Woojin stays silent, knowing Jihoon needs time.

"I just… never enjoyed it. I regret it every time. I mean, I'm not forced into it, _never_. But I just _don't like sex_. I've done it, what, five times? Three times with the same person. Just in hopes of enjoying it once. That sounds like a real dick thing to do, especially when it turns out that I _never_  enjoy it." Jihoon states, exasperatedly. His eyes don't meet Woojin's, the same way Woojin's avoid his.

"I mean. I just don't get it. When I'm doing it, to… myself, it's alright. But evey time it's with someone else…" he looks genuinely confused.

"Maybe you just haven't met the right person." Woojin says unhelpfully. It's disturbingly clear that's the truth, but they both know what it connotes: the worry of _never_  finding someone special enough.

"This is depressing. What if Jihoon Jr. never finds love." Woojin chokes back a laugh but fails, and the two are sent into spirals of cackles.

Their eyes meet as the laughter fades off. Woojin shoots him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry too much." Woojin joins him on the bed, squeezing up against the older boy. "I'm more surprised that you actually get laid."

Jihoon grabs the pillow from under their heads and proceeds to wack the ever loving shit out of Woojin.

His face is flushed scarlet. "I mean." _wack_  "the kind of girls" _wack_ "I dated this year" _wack_ "were you know… more provocative" his wacking slows down.

"And I guess, the first time it happened, I didn't initiate it." Jihoon drops the pillow and plays with Woojin's fraying blanket, pulling at the loose thread. "She did. And I just went along, thinking I'd scored. But it was _ok_ and I kinda regretted it afterward." Jihoon throws his hands in the air. "I don't know! Why are we talking about this?" His blush has travelled to his neck now. His gaze is unfocused and Woojin knows he has more to say.

"It was, the hype. Yeah. The hype. Everyone's all _fuck bitches get money_ , but fucking bitches wasn't all that _great_. So I thought something was wrong with me. Yeah and I guess I had to make sure it wasn't just, y'know, _her_. That it was _my_  problem" His last words are muffled by the pillows he's hiding behind.

"Dude… it's not a problem. I mean, if that's a problem, what about me man? At least you, I don't know, _finished_  righ-." Woojin pauses. "You _did_  finish right?"

"Oh my god I'm gonna kill you." Jihoon's eyes are wide but he answers anyway. "I mean. Well. _Ye_ _ah_." he answers softly, collapsing behind the pillow before exploding. "WHY ARE WE HAVING THIS CONVERSATION. WHEN DID YOU BECOME SO DIRTY PARK WOOJIN."

Woojin shoots him a scandalized look. "I'M THE DIRTY ONE? YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S STUCK HIS DIC-" Jihoon tackles him with a pillow muffling the rest of his words.

"YOU BETTER SHUT YOUR VIRGIN ASS UP."

Woojin struggles before feigning asphyxiation. Jihoon wacks him a few more times for good measure before sitting on his heels, panting.

"I'm not gonna say it's not fucked up because it kinda is. I hope they knew you were just fooling around." Woojin says, leaning his weight on his elbows. "I hope you didn't break any hearts."

Jihoon remains silent but Woojin knows not to push it. He feels bad enough. Woojin sighs and runs a hand through the older boy's hair.

"Just don't be stupid anymore."

Jihoon nods gently, crawling under the covers. "I'm done with girls."

Woojin laughs. "That's what you say everytime. And then you see a pretty girl and you're a goner."

It was the pretty girl syndrome, as Woojin had aptly named. When girls are pretty, boys are interested. They flirt. They pine. It's simple, really. It's just something within men that scientist haven't fully understood yet.

"Don't I fucking know it." Jihoon actually looks dejected over the thought of pretty girls. "And they're every where. Nowhere is safe."

"Oh boy, wait till you get to uni." Woojin harps. Woojin isn't sure if he's immune to the pretty girl syndrome, or if he just thinks that all girls are pretty, but he's never felt that admiration or speechlessness over a girl being pretty, she doesn't even have to be pretty, or a _girl_. Woojin's just got social issues.

Jihoon groans. "Why am I such a horny bastard."

"Yeah. Why _are_  you such a horny bastard?" He slips under the blanket next to Jihoon, feeling sleep weigh down on his eyelids. It's a bit of a tight squeeze with a super single bed but Woojin doesn't mind and Jihoon doesn't seem to care.

Jihoon clicks his tongue. "Must be my parents." He turns to Woojin. "Did you know I was a mistake?"

Woojin scrunches his nose. "I didn't really need to know that."

"Well… I was. And it kinda freaks me out how a mistake is the cause of my life." Woojin perks an eyebrow up and glances at Jihoon who's eyes are on the verge of closing. He wants to ask if getting an air mattress would be a good idea but he's lazy and Jihoon's a minute from sleep.

As one of the rare times Jihoon has slept over, Woojin gets to see the introspective Jihoon appear, the one that rears its head when the boy is on the verge of sleep.

"If my life was a mistake, how pefectly can I execute it on the basis of its entirety being a mistake. No matter what I do, it'll never be perfect."

Woojin fluffs the pillow under his head.

"Well, it's a good thing our existence is temporary, overcome eventually by the sweet release of death." Woojin deadpans.

"You always know how reassure me." Jihoon mumbles, without a trace of sarcasm. Woojin chuckles lowly. He could've said anything and the boy would have taken it as reassurance in his borderline comatose state.

He looks over and Jihoon is already breathing deeply, mouth slightly agape. He feels a smile tugging at his lips, shuffling deeper into the mattress.

He's confident Jihoon will figure everything out eventually, and even if he doesn't, he's got lots of time to learn to live with it, just as Woojin has.

* * *

Woojin wakes up because it's too hot under the covers. He opens his eyes and realises soon enough that he's _not_ under the covers but under Jihoon, who has taken it upon himself to drape as much of his body on top of Woojin.

Woojin's neck is sticky. He glances at the clock and groans.

7.12 A.M.

"Get off me you fat fuck." Woojin whispers.

Jihoon whimpers, brows furrowing, but does nothing to shift his weight off Woojin.

Woojin sighs, choosing to take a more docile approach. His bestfriend must be having one hell of a hangover and Woojin himself wouldn't like anyone shouting at him at 7 in the morning, hangover or not.

He takes hold of Jihoon's wrist across his chest, moving it straight up between their heads. Jihoon's right half was resting completely on Woojin, so he grabs the boy's right underarm with his left hand, gently rolling him over.

Well, that was the _plan_.

As soon as Woojin's hand lands on the boy's armpit, Jihoon let's out a loud gasp, eyes shooting open.

"Woojin. No."

Woojin's quirks an eyebrow. "What."

Jihoon scrambles off him. "Nothing. It's nothing." He lets out a nervous laugh. "Nothing at all."

Woojin frowns. "Dude, what? You ticklish or something?"

Jihoon remains quiet, avoiding eye contact. Woojin feels a smile stretching across his face. He reaches out towards Jihoon and the boy flinches so hard his head hits the wall behind him. Woojin jumps into action, rubbing the bump at the back of his head.

"Shit, man. I'm sorry." He feigns guilt.

Jihoon's eyes are wet. "Fuck you." But there's no bite behind his words, he chuckles. "Ow."

"Ahhh. I'm really sorry." He cards his hand through the older boy's crazy bedhair, who sits there limply, letting him do whatever he wants. "You know how you can feel better?"

Jihoon pouts and looks up at him. "How- Ya!"

Woojin digs his fingers into the side of Jihoon's belly, keeping his other hand on the back of the older's head, preventing any other accidents.

The sound that Jihoon makes is a mix between whimpering, crying and laughing.

"Park Wooj- oh my god. Stop. P-please." His hands are latched to the redhead's arms but all efforts to stop him are ruined by his laughter.

Woojin is relentless in his torturing, bringing Jihoon's head closer, not letting the boy escape. He buries his head in Woojin's chest, trying to headbutt the younger boy off of him.

They fall backwards and Woojin frees his other hand for tickling usage as well. Jihoon starts begging but Woojin only thinks it's enough once Jihoon has collapsed on him and is gasping for breath.

Jihoon uses Woojin's face to get up, much to the younger's muffled protest.

"I can do much worse than that. You better shut up."

"I never knew you were ticklish."

Jihoon shoots him a pointed look. "Why'd you think I didn't tell you?" He says sarcastically, still panting. He rolls off Woojin's lap and lies flat on his back. Woojin has a shit eating grin on his face that he can't seem to get rid of.

"That was emotionally draining. I'm going back to sleep." Jihoon says, closing his eyes. Woojin watches his chest climb with every breath he takes. It's hypnotic enough to put him to sleep as well.


End file.
